Tentative deal would give SFPD a 14% pay raise as city faces projected $897 million budget shortfall

SAN FRANCISCO – San Francisco police officers are set to receive a 14% pay raise over the next four years, thanks to a tentative deal between their union and the City and County of San Francisco.

The deal was unanimously approved by the San Francisco Police Officers Association Board of Directors on Wednesday. The next step in making the deal a reality is rank-and-file officers voting on the deal by April 1.

The measure also requires approval from the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.

What we know:

Negotiations for the pay raise began in January. In addition to the pay increase, there will be a retention bonus of 3% for officers who have been with the department for a minimum of five years. That bonus is designed to retain experienced officers as well as recruit new ones to join.

SFPD recruits, starting on their first day at the police academy, earn a salary of $119,262 a year.

“This agreement is a balanced one,” Louis Wong, the President of the SFPOA said in a press release.” It provides meaningful improvements that recognize the dedication, sacrifice, and professionalism of our officers, while also being fiscally responsible at a time when San Fancisco is facing a significant budget deficit.”

By the numbers:

San Francisco is facing a projected $877 million two-year deficit, which raises questions about how city leadership will maintain other programs and simultaneously fund the raises for the police department.

A recent report from think tank SPUR — the San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research Association — published earlier this month states police and firefighter contract negotiations will be “among the most significant financial decisions the city makes.”

“These contracts affect nearly $1 billion in annual spending — about 39% of the city’s discretionary budget. The current deficit projections assume that wages for police officers and firefighters will grow roughly in line with projected inflation, currently 3% to 3.3% annually,” the report states. “A wage increase just 2% above inflation could add $58 million to the deficit for police and fire alone, cutting into the city’s discretionary funds that would otherwise be spent on other services.”

The report notes that offering no raises will make it harder to recruit new officers to the department. Lurie in May, 2025 signed an executive order aimed at adding 500 new officers to the department. Then-Interim Chief Paul Yep announced in October of that year the department was seeing a surge in new recruits.

Big picture view:

The potential SFPD raises may further complicate Lurie’s already tense budget discussions going forward. The city in 2027 will negotiate contracts with its 31,000 other employees, and precedents set now could affect the entire workforce.

Earlier this month, Mayor Daniel Lurie’s office shared a plan to reduce expenses by cutting at least 500 jobs.

The city’s health department alone is expected to cut roughly $20 million in staff costs, equal to around 100 staffers.

An email sent to department heads from the city’s budget director, Sophia Kittler, said the city must eliminate at least $100 million in personnel spending. That email, obtained by the San Francisco Standard, was critical of the proposed budgets that departments sent to the mayor’s office earlier in the year.

Those proposals suggested eliminating roughly 100 positions.